One Hundred Attend Founders' Day Banquet in Atlanta By J. CLEVE ALLEN
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N DECEMBER 10, the members of the Atlanta Alumni Chapter gave their annual banquet in honor of the three founders of the fraternity. The principal speaker of the occasion was our old friend T. R. ("Reub") Waggoner, Mu, who pleased with his stories and his resume of the birth, the growth, and the success of Pi Kappa Phi. During his talk, Brother Waggoner mentioned a dozen or more nationally known Pi Kapps who had made good in :t big way in their endeavors, and he also brought to light several interesting facts about the lives of our founders of which many of the listeners were not familiar. At the conclusion of Brother Waggoner's talk, we all had but one thought in mind: "that Reub could out-talk them all." The banquet was ably handled by the out-going president, Brother John Rourk, who served in the capacity of toastmaster, and did a good job of it, too; and while we are on the subject, let us drop just a word of praise for Brother Rourk. He had an exceedingly hard task before him in keeping up the interest of the members during 1931, which was a lean year for us all; but he came through with flying colors and turned over the helm to the new president with the knowledge that he had secured the cooperation of our chapter, and had made good! The affair was also well supplied with entertain-
ment, having none other than Wallace Jackson and his Ansley Rathskeller orchestra, which furnished the tunes by which lovely Miss Kathryn Crawford danced and sang. The chapter is apprec iative of the personal interest taken in the banquet by the management of the Ansley Hotel. Interesting talks were given by Brother Nathan T. Teague, 1930 president of the Atlanta Alumni Chapter, and the archons of Atlanta's three active chapters: Bob McCamy, Iota; Pat Patterson, Eta, and Park Brinson, Pi. Brother Ray Nixon, assistant dean at Emory University, led the body, which numbered one hundred, in several Pi Kapp songs. Brother Nixon was also master of ceremoni es at our annual radio broadcast over WSB, later in the evening. The program was well planned and well carried out, and many telegrams and letters have been received congratulating Brother Nixon and the chapter in putting over this broadcast. At the conclusion of the banquet, the officers for 1932 were introduced by Brother Rourk, each of whom said a few words. The new officers are: J. W. Whitaker, president: Francis Dwyer, first vice-president; Paul Etheridge, second vice-pres ident; Henry 0. Robison, third vicepresident, and J. Cleve Allen, secretary-treasurer.
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Interfraternity Conference Holds Vital Sessions (Continued from page 6) adjust to gradual but significant educational changes would assault the fraternity system as wou ld a slow and creeping sickness of which one is hardly aware, whereas, a threat from a legislature is so dramatic that you wou ld be summoned to defense at once. As against the dangers of the past and the dangers of the future, those of the past have been much less dreadful. TI11S has been our defect in the past. One reason why you have not assimilated and made better fraternity men out of the boys we have taken to membership is found in our unwillingness to face the rising standard for academic continuance in higher institutions. You have had too many one-year men. We know well that one four-year man is better assimi lated in the fraternity than four one-year men. I think we are not likely in any case to have a two-year senior co ll ege. As a matter of fact, our sma ll co ll ege today is a five-yea r co ll ege. About eighty-five per cent of them, if I remember correctly, are granting the master's degree. They will in al l probability become three-year colleges and not two-
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year colleges. If you will watch what is happening to the master's degree you will begin to understand what I mean. That crowd that came through the elementary schools and filled up the high schoo ls, and is now wedging its way into the colleges and going on into the graduate schools, cer· tainly as far as the A.M., is making the first year of graduate work more closely akin to high grade work in the upper undergraduate years. In fact, the same faculties are tending more and more to contro l the A.B., and the A.M. The Ph.D· degree moves off by itself. Sociable as well as intellectual standards will change for the fraternity. The companionship for which the universitY stands is going to be of a different and higher sort. Soci~l life will tend more and more to be cu ltu ral. You cannot ad· mit men who will meet the new cultural and intellectual standards without changing the nature of fraternity corn· panionship. Some of you recognize this already. You are in· terested in establishing chapter libraries for general culture reading, the books of which not only bear upon their studies. but about life and ed ucation and art. This tendency is an indication of your intuitive keenness in sensing the future. More and more manifestations of thiS kind wi ll conserve the fraternity system for the better use· fulness which has always been potential in it.
THE STAR AND LAMl'
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